title: An online narrative archive of patient experiences to support the education of physiotherapy and social work students in North East England: an evaluation study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Patient narratives are a viable process for patients to contribute to the education of future health professionals and social workers. Narratives can facilitate a deeper understanding of the self and others through self-reflection and encourage transformative learning among students. Increasingly, accounts of health and care are available online but their use in health and social work education requires evaluation. This study explored the experiences of stakeholders who contributed to, developed and used an online narrative archive, which was developed in collaboration with five universities and healthcare providers in the North East of England (CETL4HealthNE).
  
  
  METHODS
  Realistic evaluation principles were used to underpin data collection, which consisted of semi-structured interviews, a focus group and observations of educators using narrative resources in teaching sessions with different professional groups in two universities. Participants included educators, storytellers, narrative interviewers, students and a transcriber. Data were analysed thematically by two researchers and verified by a third researcher.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Stakeholders reported that listening to patient narratives was challenging. The process of contributing the story was a positive cathartic experience for patients, and the powerful storyteller voice often evoked empathy. Students commented on the ability of the online audio-visual narratives to enable them to see the patient holistically, and educators reported that narratives provided a means to introduce sensitive topics.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The use of a locally generated online narrative archive is beneficial for storytellers, students and educators, providing an opportunity to influence healthcare professional training. Care needs to be taken when exposing individuals to potentially sensitive narratives.
authors.affiliation: Northumbria University, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Newcastle upon Tyne, England, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Powell
authors.forename: Jason
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Scott
authors.forename: Lesley
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Scott
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Jones
mesh_terms: D004739:England; D006801:Humans; D063545:Personal Narratives as Topic; D026761:Physical Therapy Specialty / Q000193:education*; D012947:Social Work / Q000193:education*; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods